Why The Amityville Horror Remake Was So Unsuccessful

The 2005 remake of classic horror movie, The Amityville Horror, was extremely unsuccessful, and there are certain reasons why. The movie, written by Scott Kosar, is a remake of the 1979 film of the same name, both based on the 1977 novel by Jay Anson. The book itself is based on the supposed real-life experience of the Lutz family, who moved into a house at 112 Ocean Avenue in Amityville, New York months after Ronald DeFeo Jr. killed six members of his family there. DeFeo claimed that voices he heard in the house prompted him to kill. Over the years, The Amityville Horror was given several sequels, and eventually grew into a franchise.

The 2005 remake stars Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George as George and Kathy Lutz. The couple have three children—Billy (Jesse James), Michael (Jimmy Bennett), and Chelsea (Chloë Grace Moretz)—from Kathy’s previous marriage. The movie is set in 1975, one year after DeFeo Jr. killed his family. When the Lutzes move into 112 Ocean Avenue, strange things begin to happen. The Lutz family begins to experience frightful supernatural activity inside the house; the kids can see the ghost of Jodie, who was murdered by her father, Ronald DeFeo Jr.

As the story goes on, George begins acting increasingly abusive to his family. Eventually, it’s revealed that George is probably being possessed by a spirit. During a climactic scene in which he tries to kill his family, Kathy knocks George unconscious and takes him away from the house. Once he’s released from the spirit’s hold, the family decides not to return to the house. Though this story is indeed scary, the 2005 remake didn’t do a great job of portraying the terror that took over the Lutz family, and couldn’t measure up to the original.

Director Andrew Douglas tried to pack too many horror genre tropes into the remake. As Peter Travers of Rolling Stone wrote upon the release of the movie, which he rated one star: ” … Douglas crams in every ghost cliché, from demonic faces to dripping blood. The house springs so many FX shocks it plays like a theme-park ride. Result? It’s not scary, just busy.” Travers added that in order for haunted house movies to be scary, they need to make viewers afraid of what they don’t see. Indeed, the remake shouldn’t have focused so much on predictable jump scares, and should have dialed down on the inclusion of so many spirits (which also included tortured Native American souls and a satanic priest). The countless scares make it hard for viewers to believe the rationality of the Lutz family. Why would they remain in the house after the first creepy night alone?

Indeed, the 2005 remake of The Amityville Horror made a mistake in not taking notes from original 1979 movie—which stars James Brolin and Margot Kidder as George and Kathy. The original, which is simpler and less focused on special effects, does a solid job demonstrating the fear of the Lutz family without going overboard on explanations and scary imagery. It also offers the explanation that the house is merely trying to drive George into madness, rather than trying to involve possessive spirits in the story.

What’s more, the 2005 remake of The Amityville Horror could have done a better job with casting. Ryan Reynolds, often thought of as a comedic or rom-com character—especially in the early aughts with Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle—is hard to take seriously as the murderous George Lutz. Perhaps the filmmakers should have cast a more serious actor, or an unknown actor whose face audiences weren’t so familiar with. Perhaps a future attempt at another remake will do a better job of telling the story of the Lutz family.

About The Author